Lesson 3- Week 6 / Product Development Management.

1. Consider various "products" you use.  Can you think of the various levels of this product?

Surface Pro computer, the Actual is the computer and the Core is the computer connectivity itself. The Augmented will be the service as a tablet, the windows store, USB port which allows me to connect any device to it and its portability.

Starbucks, the Core is Coffee; the Actual is a store to purchase coffee, hot chocolate and tea. The Augmented is the environment, tables, free internet, power outlets, and extra food available.

Panera bread, the Core is bread, the Actual is a small restaurant chain located in easy places to park. Augmented is the chimney, free internet, extra food options for lunch and dinner.

2. Products are tools (drill) that provide consumer benefits.  If the a better tool comes along that provides the same core benefit but is easier to get, cheaper, or more fun then the old tool will be obsolete.  Can you think of cases where products have become obsolete? 

GPS have become obsolete because phones now include a GPS or even cars now include it. I remember in 2006, I used to have a GPS which used to provide the position functionality and I used to connect it to the computer which had the maps then my husband and I were able to travel to different places by using this old way GPS. When the GPS with screen and maps had a more accessible price, we purchased it because it was easier than the old GPS. Currently, we use our phones in two different versions, his phone is able to download maps into the device then he does need internet connection when we are driving, my phone accesses Google maps with an internet connection and uses the internal GPS. At this point the GPS we purchased had become obsolete.

Picture cameras, in 1990’s cameras started to boom and I used to have a very cheap one, later on I purchased another camera which lasted for a couple of years however it was heavy. Around 2008, I purchased another simple camera which has been very useful for traveling and my husband has a semiprofessional camera. With the latest smartphones, my camera became obsolete because the phone takes good pictures and if we want excellent pictures we use my semiprofessional camera.

3. Considering the diagram of page 102 of your text how do you think product development has been affected by shorter product lifecycles?  Has technology affected product development? Product development has been affected because there are more technology tools to collect information about the customer needs. The following video shows a big example of how understanding why people buy products is the most important factor
4. https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action#t-6736